I think that Hoke has done a good enough job that it's forced me to re-evaluate what makes a head coach "good." During the search, I was hoping we'd land another Rich Rodriguez/Urban Meyes "genius" coach who creatively innovates and has the potential to bring teams to the top. Hoke, by his own admission is not that coach, but he hired two coordinators whohave unleashed some truly creative playcalls and assembled a staff that by all appearances has really great cohesion. He himself makes intelligent decisions in-game and seems to manage his coordinators successfully without micromanaging them.

As cheesy as it sounds, Hoke's very love for Michigan seems to be the single greatest asset, as I think that more than anything is creating a lot of positive energy around the program that excites the current players, future recruits, and all of the fans. It will take three or four years to see what Hoke's true legacy as a Michigan coach will be, but at this point I'm really hoping he is able to fill the icon void left by Bo, and don't see any reason why that's not possible if things keep going on the upward trajectory they appear to be.

I remember thinking this very thing while watching the game. His defense seemed really well-coached and played impressively for much of the game, and he generally seems to have his act together in a way that's miles above the Zooker. I bet he'd be a really good candidate.

There were a lot of issues with dropped balls early, but the biggest issue there was the proverbial battle in the trenches. I thought Denard did pretty well considering the pass protection issues. The really puzzling thing was how poor our defensive line played.

I think we were all expecting a few losses at some point, so I am not super surprised by this. After any loss, it is easy to look at negatives and mistakes, but I still think this is a 9 win team, based on overall season performance to date. Morbid though it may seem, I am sort of excited to see how Hoke and company bounce back after a defeat.

Agreed. My younger brother attends there, and I have kept track of them more than I usually would. They were competitive against Illinois, and to a lesser extent against us as well. The insane reporter from Kalamazoo who said Alex Carder was the best quarterback in the state is still insane, but man, not by much. They should roll through most of the MAC schedule at the rate they are going.